Bionic's Bone Blog

[Bionic]

Day 12:

Feeling no pain with the cane!  Went for my morning walk.  Had the cane in one hand and a cup of java in the other.  Finished the first 1/8-mile with no real clunking or knee pain.  On the way back, up the hill, I felt my stride lengthening and some real power coming into my legs.  I passed the house and kept going.  Went two more blocks, all uphill, met and chatted with a neighbor, then turned to come home.  I could have kept going.  No pain whatsoever; in fact, it felt great.  I couldn't imagine a better way to start my day.

It really feels like my body is thanking me for having its hip resurfaced.

[Tekka]

Bionic

Your the man...day 12, you are making a great recovery !!

Those twelve days have gone by quickly.

Terry

[Bionic]

Day 13:

I went for my first longish walk yesterday--about 3/4 mile over hilly terrain.  It was no problem.

So I repeated it this morning.  If I had stopped at the end it would have been perfect, but I pushed it another 1/4 mile.  The result was a slight crampy feeling in my right hip flexor.  It was not a full-blown charlie horse--more like a wave of crampiness that passed over the muscle and then disappeared.  It happened with about 1/8 mile yet to walk, so I just slowed way down and took little steps back home.  Now I'm icing and elevating.  So far, it's not a big problem, just something to watch.

What is more of a problem is the pain I'm having in my thigh.  It is not at the incision site; in fact, it's on the inside of my thigh opposite the incision.  It feels tender during the day--like there's some bruising there.  At night it becomes much worse.  Sometime around 2am last night I rolled over in bed to my side and placed a pillow between my legs.  Just the little force of the pillow against my inner thigh send waves of deep pain through my leg.  It made me almost want to scream.  The pain subsided after a few minutes, and I was able to sleep on my side.  Last night was the third night it has happened.  I think I'll email the doctor's office about it.

[Todd]

Bionic,

Welcome to the "I think I over-did it club".  We've all been there and we all recover eventually.  I also had significant bruising throughout the thigh away from the incision.  I'm guessing that you still have considerable swelling and the bruising should subside in a few days--keep icing.  It will get better.  I'm coming up to 7 weeks post op, and the overall improvement from day 1 is unbelievable.  I can now walk on uneven terrain, move laterally, and get around without much thought about hurting myself. Over the coarse of recovery and reading posts of those who have gone before me, I wondered if I would get to this point.  I did, and you will too.  The only advice I have is to take it day by day.  Exercise and moving around is important, but I have found that pushing myself for an additional 1/2 mile on the treadmill did nothing for me.  I was thinking I would get in shape and recover the hip at the same time which turned out to be counterproductive. I have come to the realization that the key to recovering is time.  Move around, stretch, do your exercises, and give your muscles time to heal, and they will.  I'll take this advice when I have my right hip done later this spring. 
Hang in there.
todd

[karenj_m]

Hey Bionic:

It sounds like aggravated muscles....don't forget the soft stuff in their (muscles, tendons) have to heal too...that does take longer than the bone.

Give yourself a few days of JUST your take home PT exercises, and good idea on icing....

One thing I noticed is some bruising at 13 days, that wasn't there earlier...so just take it back a notch.

Good to check in with your doctor too....

[Bionic]

Lee says not to worry about the thigh pain.  It is normal and will go away with time.  Maybe I'll just take a couple of Tylenol before bed.

Todd, I understand what you mean about wanting to get into shape.  I am really chomping at the bit to get back on my exercise bike.  But Doc says not until 6 weeks.  Gulp.  I'll probably gain 10 pounds by then.  My weight still hasn't dropped below 196--4 pounds more than my pre-op weight.  And I know it's not all the implants!  And the swelling is practically gone, along with all my excuses ...

The funny cramp hasn't come back.  I took another, shorter walk this evening.  It felt pretty good, although I was a bit tired in the homestretch.  Maybe I should take Karen's advice and bag the walking for a day.  Or maybe I'll just make tomorrow an easy day.

There's reason to celebrate!  I took my last Lovenox injection today.  No more gut shots.  That was a milestone I was really looking forward to.  I'm starting to feel like I'm climbing over the hump.

[JeanM]

Todd has given you great advice!  I agree with everything he says.  I freaked out many times during those first few months, worried that I screwed it all up by doing something that I should not have done.  You'll continue to have many and varied aches and pains that will evolve over the next many weeks.  You'll see changes day to day and even more so week to week.  Be patient with you body and understand that there's a lot of healing that needs to happen and it will take some time to work itself out.  Just go with the flow!

[hawaiieric]

Bionic,

If I read your post right, seems like alot of us had that pain in our leg, felt like a bruise to the bone...if that is what your feeling, and it comes on when your at rest, the best thing for myself was to simply take a short walk, and walk it off...2 or 3 minutes of walking around really helped me get through that one.  I think it remember it was a painful thought to stand up...the first 3 or 5 steps hurt, then it simply got more and more of a normal feeling..like as in the circulation was the answer for me.  I was also using lots of pillows to adjust my leg and would change its position every few minutes or hours..and I used a long scarf(serong) and would use that to bend my knee, or even give me an indian massage there on the leg by one wrap and pull the ends one way then the other.  I know when I got my ankle closer to my rear end, the tightness of the muscle was there, but it would be relief when I straightened it out.  I do remember I posted that the walking thing was the best relief for me though.
Eric

[Bionic]

Eric,

I think we're describing similar things, except my pain feels like it's coming from just under the skin, not from the bone.  It's always worse after sitting for long periods, especially at night, and during the night when I wake up from sleeping.  The best thing for it seems to be to get up and walk around a bit.  The pain wears off after a couple of minutes on my feet.

Jeanie,

I went for a walk today and did find myself slowing down a bit.  I decided not to push it.  I think I'm getting back into a more normal routine, and that means eating and sleeping a little less.  Maybe I'm a little tired.

I noticed that my weight finally dropped this morning.  I'm 194.4, which is getting close to my 192 pre-op weight.  I figure the implants minus the lost bone amount to about a pound, so I'm nearly back to where I started.  There's still a slight bit of swelling, which comes and goes over the course of the day.

Nothing really new to report today so far.  I'm spending some time at my desk and finding it comfortable.  I guess that counts as an improvement.  Tomorrow I think I'll get back to work.

[Bionic]

Day 15: My 2-Week Post-Op Anniversary

I'm still walking with the cane, but I'm not pressing on it nearly as hard as before.  Walking feels good, but I find myself getting a little tired after 1/2-mile or so.  Maybe it's the shoes--I haven't changed out of my leather moccasins since the surgery.  Moccasins solve the problem of shoelaces, but maybe I'll try sneakers tomorrow.

I have a little tightness in my right hip flexor.  Wikipedia tells me the "hip flexor" is not one muscle, but a whole group of them, which work together to raise the knee.  It feels like the tightness is coming from the point just forward of my hip, lined up with approximately the middle of my thigh.  The anatomy charts point to the spot where three muscles come together, the tensor fascie latae (different from the Starbuck's kind), rectus femoris, and sartorius.  See http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/de/Tensor_fasciae_latae.png

These were very tight before surgery.  In fact, I couldn't extend my hip as far as I can now.  I'm not trying specifically to stretch them (it's not part of my prescribed PT), but I am trying to let them unravel as I walk.

The nighttime leg pain was a little less last night than it's been in previous nights.

Progress has definintely slowed--at least the outward signs have.  Still, I continue to feel better each day.

[Bionic]

Day 18:

I'm feeling stronger every day.  I thought I was suffering a setback yesterday because I felt generally tired and worn out.  I took a little nap in the afternoon, and that helped a lot.  Then I noticed that my son and my wife were both sick.  Maybe it wasn't my surgery, and I was just fighting off a cold?

Regardless, today is a new day.  My morning walk has been extended to nearly a mile, up and down some fairly steep hills.  This mornging I dared myself to a little game.  I would hold my cane up every other step and try to walk naturally.  To my pleasure and surprise, I was able to do this fairly easily. 

In general, I find myself walking away from the cane more and more.  I don't go far, but it's an encouraging sign.  Of course, the times I need the cane most are in the mornings when I first wake up and at night, when I get tired.

I'm still sacking out at 8-9pm.   I decided not to fight the fatigue.  I'm awake by around 5 or 6am, though.  It's great to be up early and have the whole day ahead of me.

The leg pain is slowly improving.  I went out and bought a case of G2 and have been slurping it non-stop.  I think the extra fluids and electrolytes are helping.  Last night wasn't nearly as bad as some previous ones.

Did I tell you I'm already walking more than a mile?  It sounds amazing to say, since there was no way I could have covered that distance on my old hip.  Even though I'm still very restricted and at the relatively early stages of healing, I'm already finding that there are things I can do now that I couldn't do before.

The next goal is to lose the cane.  I think I will plan to wean myself rather than stopping cold turkey.  I'll take it with me and use it as needed until I'm sure I won't be using it at all.  The "weaning" process has really already begun.

[obxpelican]

Bionic,

You sound really close to losing that last stick.  I gave up all my sticks Sept 1st, I was operated on August 6th you are right on pace or slightly ahead of me and Lee was real happy with my progress.

Keep up the great rehabbing, don't push it, but let your body tell you.



Chuck

[Bionic]

I'm definitely catching a cold.  I don't feel horrible, but it does explain the fatigue I've been having.

I finally drove around my walking route.  I clocked the mileage at 1.05 miles.  Do you think that's too much at this stage?  There have actually been a couple of days when I've done it twice, not counting incidental walking here and there.

Tonight I managed to clean up after dinner without my cane at all.  I even walked outside, unloaded stuff from the car, and walked back in, all with no cane.

I find it easier to walk cane-free while carrying something.  I just hold whatever it is off to the right side of body, and it takes all the load off of my abductors.  With a 5 pound weight held out to the side I can walk perfectly normally.

[wayne-0]

Hey Bionic,
When I read your deal about driving your walking route it made me laugh cause I did exactly the same thing.I drove to see the mileage and when I read the odometer I was very pleased that I could walk that far so soon after surgery.I think 1.05 miles is just right for you at this time of your recovery.Keep it up.

Wayne

[Bionic]

I've come to a troubling realization.  I don't expect much sympathy from the guys on this one, but maybe I'll hear from some of the ladies.

As the swelling around my incision goes down, it has become apparent that my right butt cheek has deflated.  It is flatter, lumpier, wavier and generally far less appealing to the eye than its partner to the left.  It was probably just as bad before surgery (except for the waviness and lumpiness); I think I must have been averting my eyes.

So my question is: Does the butt ever recover?  Am I destined to having a lopsided backside for life?  Should I consider a butt implant next?

Please be gentle in your responses.  You know that my butt can't take much more abuse!

[obxpelican]

Please!  Please! Please!  Please! Do not post pictures of your butt Bionic, ok?    ;D ;D ;D

All seriousness aside, mine took about 5 months before it started smoothing out, now at 7 months post op I have to feel around till I know where my incision is.  My incision is longer than Gross's 4" mark, probably around 5 1/2" or so.

Your butt will also get it's tone back too, mine is almost like it was post op now, not that my butt had a lot of tone to it though.   :-[


Good luck with your butt Bionic.


Chuck

[Bionic]

:)

[Pat Walter]

Bionic

Patience man!  You have been thru major major surgery.  It will take 6 months for major healing and a full year for full healing.  So why would your butt heal any faster!  That is unless you have a very specially talented butt!

Give yourself permission to become a patient person and stop worrying.  Dream about the great summer you are going to have.

Incisions and muscles take time - only your mind can heal in an instant! You body will take time for the muscles to heal and then become normal and useful again.  When people come out of casts for 6 weeks or more, their muscles are very athrophied.  They nomally come back with usage.  It will take your body longer than 6 weeks to heal.

Good Luck and think good thoughts about running about on a great new hip!

Pat

[Bionic]

Thank you, Pat.  You can always count on the ladies to give a balanced perspective, even when it comes to imbalanced buttocks.

[Bionic]

My right (operated) thigh is also 1" smaller around than my left.  I've apparently been walking around on one leg for the past 10 years.